A moment of silence seems appropriate.

I remember Marcel on the Ed Sullivan show-in the 50's... now there was an innocent era. At least it seemed that way to me as a kid.

He was on Ed Sullivan a lot, as I remember. Innocent time? I don't know about that, but watching Ed Sullivan was a family ritual at our house.

Rumor has it he'll be buried in a glass coffin.

Actually, there will be no coffin, but the corpse will convince us that there is one...

I saw him in the 80s at a fairly small venue in Madison; he was enthralling. I was amazed to be so captivated by mime of all things. Proof that genius takes many forms.

And I saw him perform once, must have been in Boston. An artist, a great one.
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PS. Henry Kissinger was born 60 days later, or so, and one can imagine and expect the Vintage of a Year shares the climate universal in its distillations.

I'll always remember him in Silent Movie, a Mel Brooks take-off on old silent movies in which the only character who speaks an audible word is, naturally, Marcel Marceau.

He was extraordinary: providing a way of seeing and experiencing the world with the simplicity of movement, the personal knowledge needed by a performer of his/her body, and the ability to tap into a universal curiosity and sense of humor.

A number of us wanted to prove that what he did worked. Perhaps not doing exactly what Marceau did, but challenging our reliance on sound and technological production from TV and radio that we grew up with. So we did mime in Portland on stage and in the streets. "Do Jump" and "Imago" Theaters, while not direct descendants, never-the-less rely on the simplicity, the perfomers, the curiosity and the innate humor to bring Portland the next generation of Marceau's artistry.

Sad to hear he is now gone. He made a difference to artists and audience. He will be missed. He leaves a strong legacy on several levels (so many possiblities to physically show that).

Senator Ben Westlund's mother:

DOROTHY WESTLUND, Sunday, September 09, 2007

It was, in many ways, a fairy tale life. Dorothy Mabel Westlund was a high school yell queen who became a "Rosie the Riveter" during World War II, then helped turn a California desert into a vibrant community and became a respected home designer.She was a beloved mother and grandmother, a friend and companion, a tireless volunteer and a benefactor of hospitals and the arts.

She made holidays magical, and was the kind of effervescent person who'd make new friends every time she stood in line at a grocery store. But as fairy tales always do, hers ended Aug. 29, 2007, when she passed away in Palm Desert at the age of 83. In her last days, she was surrounded by family and friends who will always be touched by her zest for life. Dorothy was preceded in death by her husband, B.J. "Bud" Westlund, co-founder of Apple Valley in 1978. Most recently, she was a 20-year resident of Palm Desert. Dorothy was born March 9, 1924, in Auburn, Wash., and grew up in nearby Kent. ...